Joe Kernen

To be honest, this book wasn't quite what I expected. To begin with I liked it, then I hated it and nearly stopped reading it, then I REALLY liked it an was glad that I had hung in there. Of course, I am starting from a point where I (nearly) completely agree with Kernen and his point of view regarding free-markets and captialism. I know that some of my more socialist leaning friends out there who don't exactly embrace capitalism as preferable may not like the book quite so well. Still I find Kernen smart, understandable and while not exactly funny, entertaining.

There were two distinct things that kept this book from being a 4 1/2 to 5 star book for me (in it's genre). The first and most glaring reason, the reason that this book was nearly given 1 star and tossed aside unfinished was Chapter 2. Are you kidding me? If you read this book plan to skip Chapter 2 all together. Only when I gave myself permission to skim this chapter did I begin to enjoy myself again. It's 36 pages of definitions felt more like 36 hundred, dry, boring pages that gave me flash-backs of summer school Econ, where the teacher was as enthusiastic to be there as we were. Sunny summer days spent copying vocabulary words and definitions out of the back of each chapter *yawn*... What the man was thinking when he wrote this chapter I'll never know. I guess he assumes that parents are going to use this book to teach their 5th graders to be free-market loving capitalists like he did with Blake? "Advertising"..."Bank"..."Recession"..."Credit"... It really was painful. But, the subsequent chapters grew more and more interesting as he went on. I was particularly fascinated by chapter 6 America vs. Europe (a comparison, not a battle).

The second thing that was lacking for me is a bit subjective. It is based on my own expectations from the title and the blurb on First Reads. I was expecting a bit more of "Your teacher said WHAT?" Things that Blake's teacher taught that Mr. Kernen found objectionable, or even crazy. In fact, there was really just the one time on page two, the catalyst for the Kernen crusade and the premise for the book. Imagine my surprise when I got to chapter two and instead of some new, wild and wacky teacher quote...I instead found the definition chapter. As I continued on, it became obvious that the title of the book came from the one incident and I'd better let go of any hopes and dreams of real humor. This was not going to be the "laugh out loud" book I had imagined and I was just going to have to read it for what it was and judge it based on that.

I already have 4 people who have expressed interest in reading just from seeing it in my possession. That's a good sign for the Kernens.… (más)

To be honest, this book wasn't quite what I expected. To begin with I liked it, then I hated it and nearly stopped reading it, then I REALLY liked it an was glad that I had hung in there. Of course, I am starting from a point where I (nearly) completely agree with Kernen and his point of view regarding free-markets and captialism. I know that some of my more socialist leaning friends out there who don't exactly embrace capitalism as preferable may not like the book quite so well. Still I find Kernen smart, understandable and while not exactly funny, entertaining.

There were two distinct things that kept this book from being a 4 1/2 to 5 star book for me (in it's genre). The first and most glaring reason, the reason that this book was nearly given 1 star and tossed aside unfinished was Chapter 2. Are you kidding me? If you read this book plan to skip Chapter 2 all together. Only when I gave myself permission to skim this chapter did I begin to enjoy myself again. It's 36 pages of definitions felt more like 36 hundred, dry, boring pages that gave me flash-backs of summer school Econ, where the teacher was as enthusiastic to be there as we were. Sunny summer days spent copying vocabulary words and definitions out of the back of each chapter *yawn*... What the man was thinking when he wrote this chapter I'll never know. I guess he assumes that parents are going to use this book to teach their 5th graders to be free-market loving capitalists like he did with Blake? "Advertising"..."Bank"..."Recession"..."Credit"... It really was painful. But, the subsequent chapters grew more and more interesting as he went on. I was particularly fascinated by chapter 6 America vs. Europe (a comparison, not a battle).

The second thing that was lacking for me is a bit subjective. It is based on my own expectations from the title and the blurb on First Reads. I was expecting a bit more of "Your teacher said WHAT?" Things that Blake's teacher taught that Mr. Kernen found objectionable, or even crazy. In fact, there was really just the one time on page two, the catalyst for the Kernen crusade and the premise for the book. Imagine my surprise when I got to chapter two and instead of some new, wild and wacky teacher quote...I instead found the definition chapter. As I continued on, it became obvious that the title of the book came from the one incident and I'd better let go of any hopes and dreams of real humor. This was not going to be the "laugh out loud" book I had imagined and I was just going to have to read it for what it was and judge it based on that.

I already have 4 people who have expressed interest in reading just from seeing it in my possession. That's a good sign for the Kernens.… (más)

As a parent with a child in the public school system, I found this a book a wonderful read. I've pretty much got a handle on the topics here but Joe Kernen breaks it down in a very easy to understand manner for any level. Blake's questions and ideas are very thought provoking and it really does show you just how a child's brain works. As adults, we are trapped within our own mind and seldom think on a lower level. We take for granted our knowledge and sometimes expect our children to understand without question. This book really does open your eyes as to how the school system is teaching our children.

If you are unfamiliar with the topics, this book explains it on a level anyone can understand. If you are familiar with the topics, it is a great recap of them. The book is not condescending, nor is it "just another text book". Joe makes it real by throwing in his own conversations with his daughter. Parents can certainly empathize when reading.

I highly recommend this read to anyone who is sending their children to school--pre-k to college, it matters not. These questions will eventually come up sometime in your conversations with your children. It's better to be prepared with the proper answers, not something you just guess at. Education is the key to success. It's never too late to learn. Arm yourself with knowledge and make the world a better place.… (más)